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DC Circuit Says Religious College Is Exempt From NLRB Jurisdiction

By Howard M. Friedman

In Carroll College, Inc. v. NLRB, (DC Cir., March 13, 2009), the DC Circuit Court of Appeals held that the National Labor Relations Board lacks jurisdiction over Carroll College under the Supreme Court's Catholic Bishop case because Carroll is a religiously operated school. The DC Circuit applied the test it had developed in 2002 in University of Great Falls v. NLRB, finding that Carroll College held itself out as providing a religious educational environment. The court concluded that the NLRB had erred in also requiring proof of actual religious influence or control. Focusing on the other portions of the Great Falls test, the Court determined that Carroll College is a non-profit institution that is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. It held that affiliation, without direct ownership, operation and control, is enough. Finally the court concluded that it could accept the college's challenge to NLRB jurisdiction under Catholic Bishop, even though this theory was raised for the first time on appeal. Before the NLRB, the school (now known as Carroll University and located in Waukesha, Wisconsin) had argued that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act exempted it from NLRB jurisdiction. Friday's Chicago Tribune reports on the decision.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on March 15, 2009 (boomark / email).